Well...I'm convinced that he actually knew how to play....that would be just too hard to mime something like that for the movie. Walking

I had no idea either.... He is really tearing it up! I think that promo picture is from the movie "Strike up the Band".. I hit that clip trying to find some other promo stills that might show the kit better.

Whenever I see a clip like that and I always wonder what famous drummer sat down and taught a child star like Mickey Rooney to play? You don't get that proficient playing in the basement.

I can tell you that Mickey Rooney knew how to do most anything related to the performing arts. He was an amazing child star. The drumming thing got right past me, though. Just when you think you know someone......

Ah ahh found it at

http://www.mississippirag.com/ragonline_sept08/features_sept_finalnotes.html

Lee Young was Nat King Cole's musical director for nearly ten years, and he broke new ground as the first African American hired as a staff musician in a Hollywood studio orchestra, signing with Columbia Pictures in 1946. Previously, he had worked sporadically at other studios, including, in the late 1930s, a gig at MGM when he taught Mickey Rooney how to play drums for Strike Up the Band.

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[COLOR="DarkRed"]Thanks....Hehehe...

...that one jogged my memory, and I went looking for & found THIS.... which had slipped behind my side table...an original B/W print.....Mick playin' on some old Luddies....[/COLOR]

Looks like a lefty too... love that set with the wood hooped toms. Wood hooped toms with calf heads would have to sound pretty good!

There's that story in Mel Torme's bio of Buddy Rich where Micky Rooney sits in on Buddy's set and actually wrecks Buddy's cymbals - takes hand hammered to a new level.

[COLOR="DarkRed"]Nope...this movie was The Strip...apparently a noir film. Check out the lineup of that band...omigosh !!!!!!!!

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzlb64Ee3pw[/ame]

Not a bad little lineup, eh ??????[/COLOR]

[COLOR="Gray"]Think I am gonna have to try to find that film, too..now I'm curious....[/COLOR]

Yeah.. the movie clips are from "The Strip" but the promo pic that started the thread is from "Strike Up The Band"

I'm going to see if I can Netflix those two movies just to see how much he improved between the two.... just curiosity.

[COLOR="DarkRed"]Aha...I get it now....:p[/COLOR]

Hey I got "Strike Up the Band" from Netflix... now that is a 1940 classic, my kids were just amazed through the whole thing... let's just say it was SWELL

Next, for our viewing pleasure "The Strip" from 1950.